A hospital in Tokyo’s Sumida Ward opened a “baby hatch” for parents to anonymously leave newborn infants in the care of social welfare agencies.
The baby hatch at San-ikukai Hospital is the second baby hatch to be set up in Japan. The first one, “Konotori no Yurikago” (stork’s cradle), was opened by Jikei Hospital in Kumamoto City in 2007. Since then, at least 170 abandoned infants have been placed in its care.
San-ikukai Hospital is operated by a social welfare corporation which runs 16 medical facilities in the Kanto region. It has obstetrics and pediatrics departments, and is also designated as a Tokyo Regional Perinatal Maternal and Child Medical Center.
According to San-ikukai, a special room will be set up on the first floor of a ward as a place to leave babies in a basket, NHK reported.
The baby hatch will accept infants up to four months old and there will be a 24-hour monitoring system.
The hospital will take care of the babies for a certain period of time, and then the child consultation center will take the lead in connecting them to infant homes or foster parents.
The hospital said it plans to implement projects, including “confidential childbirth” that allows pregnant women to only reveal their names and contact information to medical staff.
The need for a baby hatch in Tokyo has been growing for several years in response to an increase in unwanted pregnancies from women suffering from poverty or abuse, as well as cases of abandoned babies.
San-ikukai Hospital director Hitoshi Kato said, “There is no end to tragic incidents such as babies being abandoned or fatally abused. We recognize that this is an urgent measure to prevent such situations. All of our staff would like to work hard in cooperation with government agencies and related private organizations, with the aim of creating a society where this project is not necessary.”
© Japan Today
© Japan Today